There are malfunctions, of the ear, such as eustachian tube insufficiency, and diseases of the ear, such as serous otitis media, which are treated by making an opening or incision in the tympanic membrane and maintaining that opening for a period of time to provide a conduit between the middle ear and the outer ear for drainage or ventilation. The medical term for opening of the tympanic membrane is myringotomy or tympanotomy.
There are known devices to be inserted into the myringotomy opening to keep it open for a period of time. Typical of such devices are those shown in U.S. Pats. Nos. 3,530,860 to Majoros; 3,807,380 to Papparella et al.; 3,835,863 to Goldberg et al.; and 3,871,380 to Heros. These devices suffer from one or more deficiencies. For example, the devices of Majoros and of Goldberg et al. are not capable of use for any long period of time because the body naturally extrudes these devices out of the myringotomy opening, or they may fall into the inner ear. The other two devices are better adapted to remain in place over a long period of time, e.g. a year, but they require a larger myringotomy opening than is desirable. Accordingly there is a need for an improved middle ear ventilation tube.
It is an object of this invention to provide an improved middle ear ventilation or drain tube. It is still another object of this invention to provide a myringotomy ventilation or drain tube that will remain in place for a long period of time with substantially no discomfort to the patient and can be easily removed. Other objects will be apparent in the following more detailed description of this invention.